Pallets are widely used in the shipping industry for facilitating efficient and expeditious movement of goods (e.g., inventory, products, parts, commodities, etc.) from one place to another, and for the storage of goods prior or subsequent to shipment. Generally, pallets typically comprise a base on which parallel spaced planks rest to form a platform surface. The base usually comprises boards arranged relative to one another or shaped to contain fork pockets. To move goods set on the platform surface, fork tines of a forklift are inserted horizontally into the fork pockets, then raised to lift the pallet and load off the ground. The forklift is then driven or moved for either re-locating the goods to a desired location or loading or unloading the loaded pallet on to or off of a vehicle, such as a truck, ship, or aircraft, for transportation to their intended destination.
While pallets and their loads usually can be moved relatively easily and safely using a forklift, most pallets are not designed for overhead hoisting, such as with a crane. One possible solution is to hoist a pallet from above using cables suspended from a crane and mated with grommets at the corners of the pallet. Another solution is to pass the cables under the pallet so as to cradle the pallet. These solutions lack adequate locking dependability, are laborious and time-consuming to implement, and may raise safety concerns if not implemented by properly trained personnel.